Steering Wheel Thumb Pad Controls Not Working on 2022 Minnie Winnie 31H

[mitchill10]

Greetings, all.
2022 Ford E450, Minnie Winnie 31H.
I am hoping to find some guidance, we really have no service locations out in our part of the world.
AV system seems to work just fine, but all buttons on the steering wheel thumb pad are unresponsive.
Here is what I have done thus far...
- I have checked every fuse that seems to be relevant, but all are fine.
- I have tried reassigning the control buttons in the AV menu, no change.
- I have tried changing out the thumb pad control, no change.
- I have tried changing out the clock spring, no change.
Any ideas? Hoping for somebody who has experienced something similar, the generic internet search is not leading me anywhere specific.

 

[Morich]

Not sure of the experience level so , beg pardon if I'm telling you things you already knew? And tyhis is my spin on a situatin that others may not agree with!!
One big things on motorhome Repair is sortin ghwere is best to take the RV or look for help. We often need to consider if it is an RV problem or is it a part of the truck that the RVis built on!
I don't know that RV well but would guess the steering whell controls will most likely be part of the "stripped chassis" bought by Winnebago to build th ehouse on top?
Experience tell many of us to stay as far away from RV repair as we can if it is a truck question. A number of reasons I see for this? One is that truck dealers have specific folks whod do truck repair and many times they are pretty well trained and each person woprks on some specific section of the truck. Tire folks do tires, engine folks do engines, type situation. But we often find RV repair is considered "leftovers' when it comes to hiring repair folsk and one guy may be expectedto know wa more than is possible!
When you throw in lower wages and much more complex things, knwing all the truck issues as well as then having the extra "house" items, that is really hard for most to be really good at knowing that much!
Many of us do try to do as much as we can but then I try to find either a small shop for truck items that seem somewhat common and simple or a big shop if it gets into the higher tech/new stuff.
I'm betting Odessa has a Ford shop and that would be where I would look for this item as it may take somebody who has access to the know how and tools to dig deeper into the electronics than many Rv folks will be able to do well!
Maybe call the local Ford folks and just ask what they think of you bringing it in?

 

[mitchill10]

Good thoughts, and thank you for them.
Yes, it is a Ford component as part of the stripped chassis, and Ford would likely be the best option if I lived in a different area. Our Ford people are known for two things here: 1) Selling Fords; and 2) Being Ford parts changers. I think I have already exhausted the parts-changing solutions, and now I need some expertise rather than their blind guesses. I suppose I am hoping for somebody who has stumbled across this before and can tell me about their experience and solution.

 

[Morich]

AARRGH!
I know the pain!
And it can be a true situation. My family has Ford blue and once had a service manager in the family. That may have led me to get better service than some which does tend to skew the thoughts in a different direction!
So maybe some thoughts beyond that, even when my automotive info is way out of date?
I deal with the electrical side of things as former job and now more as a tech-desk if there was such a thing for oil guys out in the "oil patch"?
So my thoughts almost always run to trying to get the good info that is hidden away in different places-if we can just find it.
I have not checked this in a long time but any good ideas of checking the local library for service manul of some sort for the Ford you have? Maybe worthwhile to get a shop manual from auto parts store?
My real info is so far out of date on cars/trucks that it is useless but if there are more than one control on the steering wheel that is out, would there be a plug on a cable connecting all those "switches" to another cable thas has come loose?
Sorry, you are likely to get better ideas if somebody has had that trouble but that sounds like kind of an odd one, so maybe not a lot of folks with that experience! UGH!

 

[RobertToby]

Not that familiar with your setup, ( I don't have Ford chassis). But reading your list of things tried, I don't see battery replacement on your thumpad. I had to change the battery on my thumpad. Is yours an actual thumpad or a fingerpad ( on back on steering wheel, as apposed to a thumpad on the front of steering wheel?

 

[mitchill10]

Not that familiar with your setup, ( I don't have Ford chassis). But reading your list of things tried, I don't see battery replacement on your thumpad. I had to change the battery on my thumpad. Is yours an actual thumpad or a fingerpad ( on back on steering wheel, as apposed to a thumpad on the front of steering wheel?

It is a thumbpad (facing the driver only, nothing facing the dashboard). As far as "battery replacement", I am not aware of any battery for it. Please advise.

 

[RVSpirit26T]

Greetings, all.
2022 Ford E450, Minnie Winnie 31H.
I am hoping to find some guidance, we really have no service locations out in our part of the world.
AV system seems to work just fine, but all buttons on the steering wheel thumb pad are unresponsive.
Here is what I have done thus far...
- I have checked every fuse that seems to be relevant, but all are fine.
- I have tried reassigning the control buttons in the AV menu, no change.
- I have tried changing out the thumb pad control, no change.
- I have tried changing out the clock spring, no change.
Any ideas? Hoping for somebody who has experienced something similar, the generic internet search is not leading me anywhere specific.

I would be surprised if they ever worked after installing the Winnebago AV system. We have a 2023 that came with the buttons on the right side replaced with a flat insert where the buttons used to be. When asked, I was told the buttons were not compatible with the Sony AV and use the small remote that came with the Sony which we have never used.

 

[mitchill10]

I would be surprised if they ever worked after installing the Winnebago AV system. We have a 2023 that came with the buttons on the right side replaced with a flat insert where the buttons used to be. When asked, I was told the buttons were not compatible with the Sony AV and use the small remote that came with the Sony which we have never used.

That's interesting. I never considered the possibility of incompatibility. To be perfectly honest, I would never have suspected that an auto builder would ever knowingly install any two components that would never work together from the get go.... Anyway, I do have the remote. But, in my mind, if I have to take my hand off of the steering wheel to pick up the remote to adjust the AV, I had might as well just use that hand to adjust the AV manually myself. Surprising that a rep would have the guts to suggest to you that the remote as a solution..... Anyway, thank you for the new suggestion. I will explore that further.

 

[RVSpirit26T]

That's interesting. I never considered the possibility of incompatibility. To be perfectly honest, I would never have suspected that an auto builder would ever knowingly install any two components that would never work together from the get go.... Anyway, I do have the remote. But, in my mind, if I have to take my hand off of the steering wheel to pick up the remote to adjust the AV, I had might as well just use that hand to adjust the AV manually myself. Surprising that a rep would have the guts to suggest to you that the remote as a solution..... Anyway, thank you for the new suggestion. I will explore that further.

As a retired manufacturing engineer, I can say it make perfect sense to me. Someone ordered AV units a couple years in advance to be ready for the new Ford chassis, then when the complaints started 2 years into production. It was easier just to put a plastic plug in the steering wheel, compared to the cost of buying AV units that would work with the Ford controller.
If it makes you feel better, I'm sure you could order the plastic plug to cover the buttons.